Harmful Effects Of Chemicals Research Articles

Acute toxicity of binary mixtures: alternative methods, QSAR and mechanisms

Committee accepted the program of chemical safety in October 2003 called REACH, meaning “Registration, Evaluation, Authorization of Chemicals”. The protection of health of nature, including human beings, against harmful effects of chemicals is a goal of these programs. The development and research on new chemicals can become, however, cheaper than their testing and registration. The aim of effort of the present is, thus, to develop and to use alternative methods of testing toxic and adverse effects of chemicals, which would be cheaper and more informative than traditional tests with experimental animals.

Hearing loss in shoemakers exposed to noise and solvent in Porto Alegre, Brazil

Clinical and experimental studies indicate a possible harmful effect of chemicals, especially organic solvents, on the hearing system. In combined exposure to noise and solvents, very common in industry, it is most likely that a synergetic action of these factors enhances the traumatizing effect of exposure to noise. The aim of this study was to access the incidence and the risk of hearing impairment in 80 shoemakers. In this work we studied the effects of occupational exposure to solvent and noise in the hearing of workers of a factory in Porto Alegre, Brazil. In the studied group we analyzed solvents concentration in the air, biological marker for toluene in urine (hippuric acid), and levels of environmental noises. We analyze too the flow sheet of industrial production. The analysis of these results showed the bilateral hearing loss of 22.45%, and 18.37% in unilateral loss, in the workers of occupational exposure to toluene and noise, with levels allowed by the Brazilian legislation. The findings suggest that exposure to toluene and noise has a toxic effect on the auditory system. Further research is needed for the better understanding of the interaction of these and other agents in the auditory systems. [Work supported by CNq/FEPPS.]

Use of Material Safety Data Sheets at Workplaces Handling Harmful Substances in Okayama, Japan

Use of Material Safety Data Sheets at Workplaces Handling Harmful Substances in Okayama, Japan: Akihiko Seki, et al. Department of Public Health, Okayama University Medical School—In April 2000, the revised Industrial Safety and Health Law, which prescribes the creation and issue of material safety data sheets (MSDSs), was enforced in Japan. Before the enforcement, we conducted a survey relating to the use of MSDSs in hazardous workplaces in Okayama Prefecture, Japan. We sent questionnaires to all workplaces possibly using hazardous chemicals, and answers from 422 workplaces, where hazardous chemicals were used but not produced, were analyzed. One‐third of the workplaces did not request MSDSs at the time of chemical transfer. In more than half of the workplaces, MSDSs were not posted or kept. The main reason for such lack of use or misuse of the MSDS system was a lack of knowledge and understanding of the system. In addition, half of the respondents considered that MSDS documents were unsatisfactory because of the difficult words used in them. These two problems, i.e., a lack of knowledge and understanding of the MSDS system, and the use of difficult words in the documents, should be remedied in order for the MSDS system to be implemented effectively and thereby protect workers from the harmful effects of chemicals.

Alternative Approaches and Tests in Ecotoxicology: A Review of the Present Position and the Prospects for Change, Taking into Account ECVAM's Duties, Topic Selection and Test Criteria

The objectives of this review are to summarise the present position concerning the use of vertebrates in ecotoxicity testing, giving particular attention to tests that cause suffering, and to discuss in some detail, alternatives to them, and the prospects for change. The report has been written with the objectives of the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ECVAM) in mind, and some recommendations for action have been made at the end of the discussion section. The first section of the review describes the present requirements within the European Union for the ecotoxicity testing of industrial chemicals in general, and for pesticides in particular, and the very limited documentation of the tests that are actually carried out. The next four sections describe the many different assays and systems used to evaluate the harmful effects of chemicals on free-living organisms and natural populations, and the extent to which they might be suitable alternatives to vertebrate toxicity tests that cause suffering. Attention is drawn to certain assays and strategies that can already be used as satisfactory alternatives, and thus provide the basis for short-term change. Included here are non-destructive assays on vertebrates which are available for certain types of chemicals, and which provide a direct and relatively uncomplicated approach to the problem. Other approaches are described which still require development, but hold considerable promise in the longer term. The growth of knowledge in the broad field of biochemical toxicology and the development of related technologies should lead to the development of better and more-sophisticated alternatives in the future. In vitro assays employing vertebrate cell systems are of particular interest here. The last section of the review deals with conclusions and recommendations. The recommendations are made with a view to the activities and responsibilities of ECVAM.

13th Meeting of the Scientific Group on Methodologies for the Safety Evaluation of Chemicals (SGOMSEC): alternative testing methodologies for ecotoxicity.

There is growing public pressure to minimize the use of vertebrates in ecotoxicity testing; therefore, effective alternatives to toxicity tests causing suffering are being sought. This report discusses alternatives and differs in some respects from the reports of the other three groups because the primary concern is with harmful effects of chemicals at the level of population and above rather than with harmful effects upon individuals. It is concluded that progress toward the objective of minimizing testing that causes suffering would be served by the following initiatives--a clearer definition of goals and strategies when undertaking testing procedures; development of alternative assays, including in vitro test systems, that are based on new technology; development of nondestructive assays for vertebrates (e.g., biomarkers) that do not cause suffering; selection of most appropriate species, strains, and developmental stages for testing procedures (but no additional species for basic testing); better integrated and more flexible testing procedures incorporating biomarker responses, ecophysiological concepts, and ecological end points (progress in this direction depends upon expert judgment). In general, testing procedures could be made more realistic, taking into account problems with mixtures, and with volatile or insoluble chemicals.

Morbidity with temporary disability at the enterprises of the chemical and petrochemical industry of the Republic of Tatarstan for 1986-1992

The chemicalization of the national economy, based on the widespread use of chemical products, increases the contact and the possibility of harmful effects of chemicals on workers, affects the level of morbidity with temporary disability (TDI), and causes damage to the health of workers and the economy.